Piganzoli Scoops Giro Dell’Emilia as McNulty Debuts Rainbow Jersey

Davide Piganzoli ran out the surprise winner of the Giro dell’Emilia on Saturday, benefiting from the same dedicated teamwork from Matteo Jorgenson that Brandon McNulty enjoyed at last weekend’s world championships.

Just as he did for McNulty, Jorgenson proved the kingmaker for Visma-Lease a Bike teammate Piganzoli after he launched a perfectly-timed solo attack in the finale.

The Italian made his move on a downhill with 4.8km to go, quickly gaining time while Jorgenson sat on wheels and marked all attempts to chase.

He started the final ascent of the San Luca climb with a 41 second lead and gave it everything on the 2.1km ascent, with Tom Pidcock (Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling), Oscar Onley (Netcompany Ineos) and Ben Healy (EF Education EasyPost) all being marked by Jorgenson.

Pidcock leaped clear closer to the line and narrowed the gap to just two seconds, with Onley taking third. Jorgenson was fifth, 12 seconds back, while McNulty had a solid showing in his first outing in the rainbow jersey with tenth.

“I picked the right moment to attack, and it paid off,” Piganzoli said afterward. “We had several cards to play. We handled this race perfectly as a team. It means a lot to me to add this great race to my palmares.”

Although he won the recent Tour de Luxembourg, he looked far from the strongest on the penultimate ascent of the climb.

Jorgenson made his move there with 10.5km remaining, close to the summit, and went solo. Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) brought back him before the top, with Onley also there, and on the descent they were joined by Pidcock and Piganzoli.

The latter made his move with 4.8km remaining, choosing the perfect moment. With Jorgenson blocking, he gained enough time to hold on until the end.

“I felt good in the closing kilometers, so I decided to go all in,” Piganzoli said. “I also wanted to put my teammates in a good position that way. We still had Ben behind us, who has a strong sprint.

“In the end, I was able to finish it off myself, but this was a victory for the entire team. I’m happy that I was able to show my good form from Luxembourg and the world championships here again.”

McNulty debuts new kit in first race since gold medal

Saturday was the first chance for McNulty to show off his rainbow jersey and rainbow-adorned bike since his surprise win in last weekend’s world championships.

The steep gradients of the San Luca climb didn’t play to his strengths but he rode aggressively, going briefly clear with 19km to go and later remaining close to the lighter riders when they went all in with one lap to go. He ended up in the second chasing group on the road.

McNulty has made clear winning the worlds won’t prevent him from riding for team leader Tadej Pogačar and others, but he certainly performed strongly on Saturday. He eventually finished tenth, 45 seconds behind Piganzoli.

“Today was really special, racing in the rainbow jersey for the first time, and I enjoyed every moment of it,” he said afterwards.

“I gave everything last weekend at the world championships, so I knew I might still be missing a little bit today.

“It was a tough day out there, but there are still plenty of opportunities to come and I’m looking forward to the next races.”

McNulty is scheduled to ride the Coppa Agostoni on Sunday and then Tre Valli Varesine on Tuesday.

He is also expected to line out in Il Lombardia next Saturday, as is an in-form Jorgenson.